Prolific supporting player with a piercing stare, familiar from the hundreds of films in which he played mean or menacing characters in the course of a seven-decade career. After appearing on the Broadway stage, Wolfe made his film debut in his late 30s and quickly won notice as Captain Bligh's cruel storekeeper and stool pigeon Maggs in "Mutiny on the Bounty" (1935). Wolfe went on to make more than 150 film appearances, often playing English or clerical characters, in films including the horror comedy "Homebodies" (1974, a starring role); Mike Nichols' "The Fortune" (1975, as the dithery old justice of the peace); "Creator" (1985); "Checking Out" (1988); and "Dick Tracy" (1990). Wolfe also played Wizard Tranquil on the 1983 TV series, "Wizards and Warriors."

Prolific supporting player with a piercing stare, familiar from the hundreds of films in which he played mean or menacing characters in the course of a seven-decade career. After appearing on the Broadway stage, Wolfe made his film debut in his late 30s and quickly won notice as Captain Bligh's cruel storekeeper and stool pigeon Maggs in "Mutiny on the Bounty" (1935). Wolfe went on to make more than 150 film appearances, often playing English or clerical characters, in films including the horror comedy "Homebodies" (1974, a starring role); Mike Nichols' "The Fortune" (1975, as the dithery old justice of the peace); "Creator" (1985); "Checking Out" (1988); and "Dick Tracy" (1990). Wolfe also played Wizard Tranquil on the 1983 TV series, "Wizards and Warriors."